Weighting of pellets/ accuracy?
- Thread starter wWilliam
- Start date
im sure every little variable you can eliminate helps .. thats alot of work though, akin to watching grass grow or paint dry lol .. in my mind a pellet that a particular gun setup and barrel can stabilize well is your best bet ...
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I weigh and roll my pellets I use for field target. For just normal shooting I don’t bother.
I have found with JSB 10.34 they will range from 10.28-10.50 as normal. Then there will be some that drop off or go well over that range. It’s those extra light ones that will throw you off.
For sorting I just set up Dixie cups of .28, .30, .32 etc up to the .50.
For match pellets I will take a batch of .36 for example and roll them. Anything that drops above or bellow my “normal” range become practice pellets.
Is it worth it for plinking, absolutely not.
I have found with JSB 10.34 they will range from 10.28-10.50 as normal. Then there will be some that drop off or go well over that range. It’s those extra light ones that will throw you off.
For sorting I just set up Dixie cups of .28, .30, .32 etc up to the .50.
For match pellets I will take a batch of .36 for example and roll them. Anything that drops above or bellow my “normal” range become practice pellets.
Is it worth it for plinking, absolutely not.
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Cleaning and lubing can help you get fewer fliers. Weighing your pellets will also help you get fewer fliers as will inspecting them and removing defective or damaged ones. Checking the head size and rolling them can be a help also.
I just use JSB pellets and have found them to be reasonably clean thus far so I do not clean my pellets
I inspect them for damage and defects and reject those that are.
I weigh all of my pellets
I will check a few head sizes but have found the JSB pellets to be very accurate in head size so I don't do too much of it.
I do the Yrrah roll test and sort according to head size on the roll. I test shoot these and use the best for my 100 yard target shooting and 200 yard plinking.
Here are a few of Toms vids that explain it all.
https://www.airgun101.com/component/allvideoshare/video/sorting-pellets-part-1-washing-amp-drying?Itemid=421
https://www.airgun101.com/component/allvideoshare/video/pellet-sorting-part-2-inspect-and-weigh?Itemid=421
https://www.airgun101.com/component/allvideoshare/video/pellet-sorting-part-3-head-sizing?Itemid=421
https://www.airgun101.com/component/allvideoshare/video/pellet-sorting-pt-4-yrrah-roll?Itemid=421
https://www.airgun101.com/component/allvideoshare/video/pellet-sorting-part-5-lubing-pellets?Itemid=421
Some will do no sorting and just find the most accurate pellets with the fewest fliers and purchase a bunch of tins of them.
So, in the end we do whatever makes us feel best and live with the rest.
Me, I stopped shooting pellets for quite some time and only shot NSA slugs clean and prelubed from the factory they were so close in weight I did not have to worry about it and there were so few damaged or defects that I did not worry about that either. I just loaded and shot and shot and...
I just use JSB pellets and have found them to be reasonably clean thus far so I do not clean my pellets
I inspect them for damage and defects and reject those that are.
I weigh all of my pellets
I will check a few head sizes but have found the JSB pellets to be very accurate in head size so I don't do too much of it.
I do the Yrrah roll test and sort according to head size on the roll. I test shoot these and use the best for my 100 yard target shooting and 200 yard plinking.
Here are a few of Toms vids that explain it all.
https://www.airgun101.com/component/allvideoshare/video/sorting-pellets-part-1-washing-amp-drying?Itemid=421
https://www.airgun101.com/component/allvideoshare/video/pellet-sorting-part-2-inspect-and-weigh?Itemid=421
https://www.airgun101.com/component/allvideoshare/video/pellet-sorting-part-3-head-sizing?Itemid=421
https://www.airgun101.com/component/allvideoshare/video/pellet-sorting-pt-4-yrrah-roll?Itemid=421
https://www.airgun101.com/component/allvideoshare/video/pellet-sorting-part-5-lubing-pellets?Itemid=421
Some will do no sorting and just find the most accurate pellets with the fewest fliers and purchase a bunch of tins of them.
So, in the end we do whatever makes us feel best and live with the rest.
Me, I stopped shooting pellets for quite some time and only shot NSA slugs clean and prelubed from the factory they were so close in weight I did not have to worry about it and there were so few damaged or defects that I did not worry about that either. I just loaded and shot and shot and...
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IMO, not worth the effort unless you are competing at very high level BR. In any type of informal target shooting, hunting, even FT, other external variables will have a much greater effect. However, I do look at each pellet when loading. The cull rate is usually low, but I always throw out a few from every tin.
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I wonder where those "few from every tin" would go if shot? My experience suggests weighing does improve consistency.
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Considering the ones I pull are easily identified as physically damaged, yes, they would probably be fliers. But sorting based on weight alone, in my experience, has not proven worthwhile. Will it improve consistency? Probably. Will it matter? Probably not. If the competition is high level group shooting,where s few thousandths of an inch can be the margin of victory, yes, I'd do it. In score competition, the result would be even less meaningful. But again, at the highest level, sure, it could make a difference.
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As mentioned..Everything..helps to a degree. How much time do you have? How serious are you about making perfect shots? Will it eliminate fliers? Probably not, reduce the number yes, but stop them, NO! Way to many things can cause a flier. Back in my experimenting days I also found that some pellets had off center skirts where the skirt was thicker in one area and thinner in another something few would ever notice but could very well cause a flier! Use good quality pellets and find which are reasonably consistant or spend your spare time trying to improve your pellets. Nothing will stop fliers, but there are many things you can do to reduce the number, which do you want to do? Shoot or sort???
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It's just a personal decision. I'd rather sip my favorite bourbon than sort pellets, then just go shoot ( the next day, let's not be shooting and drinking ).
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I’m a shooter not a sorter, spent years reloading my own ammo. One thing it taught me is shooting is way funner then any of the tedious chores trying to eek out a better grouping. I shoot for fun not competition.
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This target at 50 feet is 10 shots weighed and sorted. Pellets sorted to hundredths of a grain. I agree that for benchrest group shooting, weighing and sorting is pretty much a given (for me). For shooting tin cans at 25 yards, nope. That's where the extremely light or heavy for size are used.
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P
pdxFrank
Guest
Asked myself the same question recently.
I get going along so well, then, whether the first or the last or somewhere in between, I get a couple three that make no sense.
I'm no guru, but before the pellet hits the target, I can usually tell if it's a good shot or not. Same with throwing darts, there's just that "feel".
Could be I'm gettin' old too and 30-shots from a break-barrel tirin' me out. Those were closer to the end.
"Sure thing buddy."
God, I'm not really going to have to do this am I? Ugh, next thing someone will say to measure them too.
I get going along so well, then, whether the first or the last or somewhere in between, I get a couple three that make no sense.
I'm no guru, but before the pellet hits the target, I can usually tell if it's a good shot or not. Same with throwing darts, there's just that "feel".
Could be I'm gettin' old too and 30-shots from a break-barrel tirin' me out. Those were closer to the end.
"Sure thing buddy."
God, I'm not really going to have to do this am I? Ugh, next thing someone will say to measure them too.
Upvote 0